The Future is Here

Robots. Artificial Creatures. How will new machines change our lives?
How will we change our machines?

In Flesh and Machines: How Robots Will Change Us (2002) author
Rodney Brooks suggests, "Our relationships with these machines will be
different from our relationships with all previous machines. The coming
robotics revolution will change the fundamental nature of our society."

What do you think? What can you contribute?

Announcements

Welcome

The Graduate School of Arts and Sciences and the School of Engineering Offer a New Interdisciplinary Doctoral Program

As a recipient of the National Science
Foundation's prestigious IGERT (Integrative Graduate
Education and Research Traineeship) award, we are charged
with establishing new models for graduate education and
training. Our goal: to create a collaborative environment in
which our research transcends traditional disciplinary
boundaries. The focus: soft material robotics.

We depend on all kinds of computers but robot assistants
don't walk into our kitchens to help us cook. Current robots
work well in factories or on the battlefield but just don't
seem compatible with most human activities. What we need are
safe, nimble, and friendly robots for the home and the
natural world.

These robots will not look or behave like today's robots.
This vision of soft robots in our homes, hospitals, and
offices highlights an urgent need for new approaches to
building such devices. Ultimately we expect that machines
interacting with living systems will be biocompatible and
biodegradable.

As of 10/4/2016, we are no longer accepting applicants for
SMR IGERT Traineeships. However, Tufts University faculty
and graduate students continue to do ground-breaking work in
the field of Soft Material Robotics. If you are interested
in doing graduate research at Tufts University in Soft
Material Robotics or in any of its adjunct disciplines,
please contact one of the professors on the Faculty Listing
page of this website. Faculty contact information can be
found by going to the Faculty Bios
page on this website.